De Beers is bringing back its classic “A Diamond Is Forever” slogan for a new global ad campaign, which execs call one of its most ambitious in years.

However, unlike past “Forever” campaigns, which promoted the entire industry, the new “I Do” ads will tout only De Beers and its brands.

It’s all part of the diamond giant’s new strategy, which takes its historically siloed marketing initiatives—including jewelry brand Forevemark, now called De Beers Forevermark; the De Beers Jewelers retail chain; and its still-being-tested code of origin—and puts them under one overarching brand umbrella.

“We want to invest in the name De Beers, which we consider one of our greatest brand assets,” says David Prager, executive vice president and chief brand officer.

While Prager wouldn’t comment on the budget behind the new campaign, he says it “will be backed up by the largest single investment we have made in any campaign” in years. It also marks the first time since the 1990s that De Beers has used the phrase “A Diamond Is Forever” in worldwide advertising.

Yet, the campaign is not built around that warhorse of a slogan, but an even better-known, older phrase: “I do.” The ads aim to reintroduce the traditional wedding vow to a new generation that isn’t exactly attached to tradition.

“We are turning ‘I do’ on its head, so it means more than just a romantic commitment,” Prager says. “It can be a commitment to your community, to your friends, to the natural world.… It can be a commitment to anything that’s important to you. We don’t want to put what that commitment looks like in a box.”

As the ad’s voice-over puts it: “ ‘I do’ are not just words you say to someone else. They are words you say to yourself.…

“ ‘I do’ is loving and celebrating yourself in every possible way. It’s more than an answer, it’s a promise, staying faithful to yourself, for better or for worse, for now and forever.”

The ads include a same-sex couple and a notably diverse group of actors.

“It’s a far more diverse and inclusive campaign that you’ve seen from us before and, frankly, that you’ve seen any diamond jewelry brand,” says Prager. “It understands the diamond dream is for everyone.”

Prager adds: “It’s in the tradition of all the great De Beers ads of the past. Like all the great De Beers marketing campaigns, it’s based on a simple truth. It’s shows the symbolic meaning of jewelry, as people interpret by whatever ‘I do’ moment they choose.”

(Images courtesy of De Beers)

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